Garlic-Ginger Chicken Stir-Fry is a quick and easy stir-fry with chicken breast, bok choy, red onion, peanuts and basil.
Garlic-Ginger Chicken Stir-Fry
Ginger, soy sauce, garlic, and chili paste turn boring chicken breast into a delicious main dish that’s just right for dinner or lunch the next day. It’s perfect on its own or with rice or noodles to soak up the sauce. More chicken stir-fry recipes you will love are Chicken and Broccoli Stir-Fry, and Chicken Zucchini Stir-Fry, and if you like beef you’ll love this Skirt Steak and Bok Choy Stir-Fry.
This simple chicken stir-fry recipe is slightly modified from What’s Gaby Cooking: Take It Easy: Recipes for Zero Stress Deliciousness. After the birth of her Gaby’s daughter she wanted to focus on recipes that didn’t require as much cooking and preparation time but were still delicious. This book aims to provide dozens of recipes that are simple enough to make and look delicious!
Although they’re not low calorie books, I was able to easily modify this recipe by using chicken breast instead of thighs, adding more bok choy, and reducing the oil a bit. It was delicious. Gaby says, “Everyone needs a good stir-fry recipe up their sleeve, and THIS IS IT. Seriously, it comes together in seconds, is gingery and garlicky in all the right ways, and the saucy bits are perfect for spicing up some white rice.”
What is the secret to a good stir-fry?
For a really good stir-fry, ensure your pan is very hot, and don’t overcrowd the meat or veggies. Have all your ingredients prepped ahead. You want everything to cook quickly and evenly.
Chicken Stir-Fry Ingredients
- Stir-Fry Sauce: Fresh ginger, reduced-sodium soy sauce or tamari, rice vinegar, garlic, sugar, toasted sesame oil, cornstarch, chili paste
- Chicken: Thinly slice boneless, skinless chicken breasts.
- Vegetables: Bok choy and red onion
- Peanuts: Crush dry-roasted peanuts.
- Basil: Traditional or Thai basil will work.
How to Make Chicken Stir-Fry
- Marinade: Whisk the eight sauce ingredients together in a bowl. Remove a third cup and set it aside. Add the chicken to the remaining sauce and marinate it for at least 30 minutes or as long as four hours.
- Chicken: If you have a wok, use it. Otherwise, heat a large, heavy cast- iron or stainless-steel skillet with a lid over high heat. Pour a teaspoon of vegetable oil into the pan, and add half of the chicken to the pan. Cook for a few minutes on each side, and transfer to a plate once done. Repeat with the remaining chicken.
- Onions: Clean the skillet and pour in the remaining teaspoon of oil. Once hot, sauté the onions until they’re lightly charred but still have some crunch.
- Sauce and Bok Choy: Return the chicken to the skillet, and pour in the remaining marinade and a half cup of water. Cook for a minute and then stir in the bok choy until wilted.
- Garnish: Transfer the stir fry to a platter, and sprinkle with peanuts and basil.
What to Serve with Chicken Stir-Fry
I skipped the rice since the portion was large – two cups! If I eat this garlic chicken stir-fry with rice, it could easily serve six instead of four. You could use brown, jasmine, or coconut rice or cauliflower rice for a low-carb option. This healthy chicken stir-fry would also be great with noodles, like soba, rice, or udon noodles.
How to Freeze Stir-Fry
Leftover stir-fry, which will last three days, makes for easy lunches during the week. You can also freeze it for up to three months. Thaw it in the fridge and reheat it in the microwave.
Stir-Fry Variations:
- Protein: Swap chicken thighs for chicken breasts.
- Onions: White or yellow onion will work if you don’t have red.
- Nuts: Omit the peanuts if you want a nut-free stir-fry.
- Spiciness: If you prefer a milder stir-fry, decrease the amount of chili paste or omit it.
More Stir-Fry Recipes You’ll Love:
- Chicken Zucchini Stir-Fry
- Tofu Stir-Fry with Vegetables in Soy Sesame Sauce
- Beef Negimaki Stir-Fry
- Soba Noodle Veggie Stir-Fry
Your comments are helpful! If you’ve tried this healthy Garlic-Ginger Chicken Stir-Fry recipe or any other on Skinnytaste, don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave me a comment below. And if you took a photo of it, share it with me on Instagram so I can reshare on my Stories!
Garlic-Ginger Chicken Stir-Fry
Ingredients
- 1 1-inch knob fresh ginger, minced
- ⅓ cup reduced sodium soy sauce, or GF tamari
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar, or sugar substitute like monk fruit
- 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
- 1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 to 3 teaspoons chili paste, to taste
- 1 1/2 pounds thin sliced boneless chicken breast cutlets, sliced into thin strips
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 medium red onion, cut into 1/2-inch chunks
- 15 ounces baby bok choy, roughly chopped (about 6 cups)
- 1/3 cup dry-roasted peanuts, crushed, for garnish
- ½ cup fresh Thai or traditional basil, torn
- Coconut jasmine rice, or cauliflower rice, optional for serving
Instructions
- In a bowl whisk together the ginger, soy, vinegar, garlic, sugar, sesame oil, cornstarch, and chili paste. Stir to combine. Remove ⅓ cup of the marinade and set aside.
- Add the chicken to the remaining marinade and let sit for at least 15 minutes up to 4 hours.
- Heat a large, heavy cast-iron or stainless steel skillet with a lid over high heat.
- Pour 1 teaspoon of the vegetable oil into the pan and swirl to coat.
- Use a slotted spoon to add half the chicken to the skillet, and stir and scrape the bottom with a wooden spoon.
- Cook chicken for about 2 to 3 minutes on each side, until golden brown. (Cover briefly, as needed, to prevent splatters.) Transfer to a plate and set aside.
- If your skillet has caked-on starch or burned garlic, return it to the heat and add a cupful of water to help scrape it off. Discard into the sink and wipe the skillet dry with paper towels.
- Heat another 1 teaspoon of oil. Repeat with the remaining chicken.
- Clean the skillet once more and pour in the remaining teaspoon of oil. Once hot, stir in the onions and sauté them until they are lightly charred but still retain some crunch, about 2 minutes.
- Add the chicken back in.
- Pour in the remaining marinade and add 1/2 cup water.
- Cook for another minute, then stir in the bok choy until wilted.
- Transfer to a platter and top with the crushed peanuts and basil.
- Serve over rice, or cauliflower rice, if desired. Makes 8 cups.
Made this with modifications but really enjoyed. I added lime juice to the marinade and omitted the sugar. I sauteed mushrooms and snow peas before adding the chicken back in. Delicious and will make again.
This recipe is a big hit in our house!
The flavors are fabulous. We prepare it exactly as written and would not change a thing.
I made this for dinner tonight, and my husband and I both loved it! I marinated the chicken for only 15 minutes, and it was still full of flavor.
Packed with flavour and really easy it make. I replaced the sugar with a touch of honey and it was perfect. Will be making this again for sure.
To die for! One of my favorites and a staple in my recipe book for casual dinner or feeding friends!
♥
This was delicious! I didn’t have enough bok choy so I added a zucchini cut roughly. I’m planning on making it again tonight but with shrimp, broccoli and zucchini because that’s what I have. I think I’ll substitute honey for the sugar.
Wondered if anyone had tried this with tofu instead of chicken? I’m going to give it a go tonight and marinate the tofu in some of the sauce first. I’ll report back!
I just made this for our dinner, cutting everything but the sauce in half for just two of us. I did cut back on the chili paste but other than that, made it just as written. As with most of Gina’s recipes, this will be in heavy rotation.
Thnanks Linda! Glad you enjoyed it!
DELICIOUS! Made this an evidence tonight but only made the chicken. Used Go to Jain instead of chili paste(which I later found in my refrigerator)- it was sooo good. Served it over a simple salad & de def that I used the leftover cooked marinade over the entire salad. Can’t wait to make it again.
Quick question – would like to mix up the marinade night before so hubby can just add the chicken a few hours before dinner. That should be ok, right? Thanks!
very tasty and easy to make
This came together easily but it was a miss for me. used sriracha instead of chili paste. maybe the coconut jasmine rice would have helped? luckily i love so many of your recipes i will just stick with them!
Restaurant quality, will definitely make again. Very yummy.
Easy to make and so delicious. Great ginger flavor.
This was absolutely delicious!
Thanks!
The first time I made this, I didn’t have bok choy so I subbed zucchini and squash. It’s been equally good, no matter which veggies I used. Excellent!
This is fabulous!! So flavorful and easy to make! Quick week night meal! Will definitely make this again! Thank you Gina!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Fabulous,I added red and yellow peppers and served with udon noodles
This is one of the best chicken stir fry recipes I’ve ever made.
Just made this for dinner and it was so much better than take out. Added zucchini and mushrooms because they needed to be used up and served over steamed broccoli because we love our veggie. Marinated the chicken for about 4 hours and the flavor was amazing( used boneless thighs because that is what I needed to use up), but , I am sure breast would be great in this marinade as well. Another winner for sure
Thanks Amy!
Family fav. I also squeezed half of lime juice in ( I love my citrus in marinades) and it was just enough to get that citrus flavor I love.
Love this recipe‼️
But 2 tablespoons of sesame is way to much (because of the strong flavor. To over pouring)
I use 1 tablespoon
Surprisingly good! I subbed almonds for peanuts since I didn’t have any peanuts. The sauce was delicious. The bok choy was excellent. It tasted restaurant good!
Wow! This dish was amazing! I had to substitute other veggies for the bok choy because our stores were out of it. I used a mix of broccoli, squash and zucchini but kept the rest of the recipe the same. We used our Blackstone grill to cook the veggies and then transferred them to the pan with the chicken. We will definitely be making this recipe again!
Delicious
I made this for dinner tonight. It was a little more complicated than most stir fry recipes I make. It took a little more time and dirtied more cookware. But my wife loves it! It is a must have again!
My family all loved it including the kids.
Once everything is washed and chopped it’s a quick easy recipe. I went heavy on the garlic and ginger by about 30% as I like a stong flavor.
Delicious. Easy to make. Prep is a little time consuming but necessary for a quick stir fry. Wonderful blend of flavors and just a few ingredients make for a great dish.
This was an absolutely delicious stir fry. I added an extra tbsp of the chili paste as me and my husband like spicy food. This will be on my meal rotation.
Great recipe, I added snow peas and extra chili paste. I will definitely be making this again!
This was delicious. Made it as written, but used sriracha instead of chili paste because didn’t have chili paste. My 12 year old also loves it. Win/ win – yummy and full of green veggies.
This was delicious!! What would the macros be without the nuts?
This was great! The tip about cleaning the pan between chicken batches helped a lot.
This was a complete winner. Because we didn’t have bok choy in the house we used broccoli (which we steamed first) and spinach. It was so good!
Is rice factored into the total calorie content?
No, rice is optional.
We cook a Skinnytaste meal at least 3 times a week and I think this may be our new favorite.
Glad you enjoyed it!
You have this recipe listed as Gluten Free but soy sauce is not gluten free.
The recipe says “or GF tamari”
La Choy soy sauce is GF
Surely a printing error…….11 inch piece of garlic.
It’s one 1-inch piece.
I thought the same thing!! 11 inches?!
Delicious! Followed the recipe as is, and really loved it!
I love your recipes, but this one was a complete miss for me. It could be the xanthin gum substitute for cornstarch(nationwide shortage, who knew, lol)
never used xanthin gum so who knows!
This is so good. Love it. Made is it exactly as written except for slightly less chili paste. Served over rice. Will make again often.
Can a pork tenderloin be used instead of chicken breast?
Sure!
Can you use spinach instead of bok choy?
Sure
Do you have a recommendation for a good wok?